A/N: When I tell you that my mind has obsessively thought about starting this fic for years, I am not kidding you. It has consumed my thoughts and I have daydreamed for hours and hours of ideas for this story. I am so BEYOND excited (heh, see what I did there?) to officially have started this Fic.

This is my first major story that follows our Hogwarts Mystery friends from Graduation all the way through the Second Wizarding War. I hope you are in it for the long haul friends, because I know I am. Not sure how many chapters this will be, so we will just wait and see how things go!

I have given this an M rating as these characters are now adults and will be following more adult-appropriate themes. I will do my best to keep things as Canon as I can as I am a big believer in that.

Year 8: Bad Dreams

1991

Arah tossed and turned. Memories haunt her dreams. The flare of a spell whizzing past her ear - Arah's friends surrounded by dark wizards, fighting for their lives. The visions flitted briefly, blurring in and out of focus. A bridge. A wall of fire towering toward her - she could hear its cackel, the heat burning her cheeks. A figure appears behind the flames - her father standing on the edge of the bridge, surrounded by fiendfyre. Arah tried to run to him, her arms reaching out helplessly as the flames enveloped him. For the briefest of moments, his golden eyes met hers- an ache of sorrowful regret reflected in his glance before he fell off the edge - falling into the dark mist below. He did not scream. But Arah did.

"DAD!" She sat up, the ghost of his name raw on her throat- skin slick with sweat as her arm reached out into the dark nothingness of her room. Arah's chest heaved as her pupils darted into the shadows- her stark empty flat beginning to take shape as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. The blank walls were a direct reflection of the loneliness she felt.

Arah ripped off her stuffy blankets, setting her feet on the cold wood as she made her way to the washroom. The floors creaked and groaned beneath her, the sound unfamiliar as she ached for Hogwarts, the place she had called home the last 7 years of her life. But this was home now.

Arah cupped her hands under the stream of icy water, splashing her face and running a cold hand across the back of her neck. She wasn't sure how long she stood there, leaning over the faucet as it ran, watching the little droplets drip off the ends of her silver hair and into the sink. Long enough for her neck to ache as she looked up, catching her reflection in the mirror. She looked different. Older. Tired.

It had been 3 months since the final battle against 'R'. Mad-Eye still had no news of recovering her father's body or the cursed amulet that disappeared with him. Arah tried her best not to picture her father's body sunken to the bottom of the inky Black Lake. Besides, she had others to care for, like her brother. Jacob was still at St. Mungo's, the nurses preparing him with resources to aid him with his recent affliction - they believed Verucca's curse had left him permanently blind. Jacob refused to accept this of course, but, after some convincing, Arah had persuaded her stubborn brother to move in with her so she could help care for him once he was released. It was why Arah had left the flat so empty, the less clutter the better. At least that's what she told herself.

Arah walked to the living area, flicking her wand as the fireplace lit up, casting the room in a warm glow as shadows danced on its bare walls. With another wave of her wand, the kettle floated atop the stove, the water beginning to heat. A cup of tea would do wonders to soothe her restless mind.

The stack of unpacked boxes sat in the corner of the room, taunting her. It had not moved from its spot since the day Arah moved in. They had graduated a couple of months ago, her friends moving forward with life beyond Hogwarts. Some seemed to be thriving while others struggled with the unfamiliarity of this new chapter. Arah knew the feeling well.

In an attempt to distract herself from the grief of her Father, she had dove fully into her new position at the Ministry as an Unspeakable for the Rare, Obscure, and Confounding Cases Department (ROCC for short). The thing about being an Unspeakable was... well, exactly that- she was forbidden to speak of it. Her friends believed her to be in 'Magical Maintenance' at the Ministry, nothing more. The secrecy of her role only caused Arah to feel more isolated from everyone than she already was. It pained her not to be able to talk freely about her new position- one that she was genuinely excited about.

But becoming an Unspeakable had not been as adventurous as Arah thought it would be. She only started a month ago and was no closer to thawing her boss' icy demeanor as she was teaching a Mountain Troll proper table manners. Crescent Flump was his name - Flump for short. The name reminded Arah of an old pair of wet socks- which fit him perfectly well she might add. Flump still had her doing grunt work; stacking papers, refilling the vending machine with Jammie Dodgers, cleaning up the secret rubbish bin entry in the ally, polishing some ominous door that led to nowhere. Arah was starting to suspect the door was simply that - just a door- a funny prank to humiliate newcomers.

At least she wasn't alone though. There was Olivia Green- Arah's previous DADA professor and Jacob's old schoolmate. When Olivia wasn't busy pouring herself back into her previous role at the ROCC, she would find a minute or two to give Arah advice or share a word of encouragement to 'hang in there', and that 'Flump wasn't so bad once you give him a chance'. Arah was not convinced.

Then there was Ruby Honeysuckle, a rootin' tootin' Texan from the good ole US of A. Ruby was a new recruit like her. Arah was surprised to find that she had taken such a strong liking to the odd witch, even though it was obvious that Flump was trying to pit them against each other- he always went out of his way to give Arah a harder time compared to her. Yet, Ruby's positivity and encouragement got them through many hours of door polishing- giggling through sore splintered hands and scheming up ways to get back at Flump when he would least expected it.

Lastly, there was Callum McClintock, Arah's mentor. Arah was still trying to figure him out. Callum could come across a bit stand-off-ish at times, but Arah could see there was more to him than his initial arrogance and unnecessary brashness. He genuinely wanted to see Ruby and Arah do well and was determined to push them the best he could. Callum was several years older- fiercely determined, a bit cocky, and wicked smart. He hailed from Glasgow, his thick accent proof of his Scottish upbringing. Arah could hardly recall seeing him at school, but that was likely because he had graduated only a couple years after she had begun at Hogwarts. Arah would have been much too young to be seen with the likes of him, a Slytherin at that. He had even taken a year to study abroad at Ilvermorny.

The kettle started to whistle, bringing Arah out of her thoughts. She worked quietly in the dim light, making her tea. This was the third time this week Arah had woken from her nightmares. For a moment, she considered sending an owl to Penny who now worked as a Potioneer at the Apothecary in Diagon Alley. Arah could ask if she could spare a Potion of Dreamless Sleep. She had no doubt Penny would jump at the opportunity to help, but Arah also knew secrecy was not Penny's strong suit... which would only cause her friends to worry more than they already did. Arah knew they meant well, but she was tired of them treating her like some delicate fragile thing after her Father died. She just wanted to be treated normally and move on with her life. Flump was almost a breath of fresh air - he couldn't care less about her well-being. All he cared about was his next fix of Jammie Dodgers.

Arah peered out the window that overlooked a sleepy Godric's Hollow, sipping the hot tea that filled her with a rush of comfort. Rain began to fall, causing little trails of water to streak down the pane. Arah pressed her finger against the cool glass, tracing the trails of water the rain left behind. It was a beautiful view, overlooking clustered rooftops of cozy little cottages, smoke bellowing from chimneys in the moonlit sky. Arah loved the quaint little village in the western countryside of England. It was peaceful. It was quiet. It wasn't Hogwarts, but maybe, in time, she would learn to call it home. It wouldn't kill her to decorate a little either... Arah placed the empty cup on the table and made her way to the pile of boxes, digging through her old trunk and finding a familiar picture frame.

Arah lifted the photo in the firelight. An image of her friends gleamed happily back at her, all of them laughing as if Jae had just muttered the most ill-timed inappropriate joke that would make a Jarvey blush. Arah could feel her lips curl into a smile as she studied the moving photo, her eyes gazing over each of their faces.

There was Andre, with his sparkling grin and unmistakable charm. Penny posed beside him, not a hair out of place, her smile perfect and dainty. Charlie was mid-belly laughing at Tonks, the Metamorphmagus had decided to pose with the mouth of a frog, tongue darting out and sticking to Tulip's cheek beside her. Tulip seemed equally amused and disgusted by her antics. Jae gleamed mischievously behind her, a silly hand gesture hidden unknowingly behind sweet Chiara who covered a laugh shyly. Ben smiled boldly while Merula rolled her eyes, the shadow of a smirk on her lips. Badeea and Liz giggled to the side, enjoying the spectacle. Even Talbott, who lurked in the back, had the slightest grin of delight. Arah's eyes lingered over Barnaby- his green eyes fixed to her in the picture- his smile warm, eyes kind and inviting. She felt her stomach lurch - she missed them deeply.

Now they were spread all over, some working at the Ministry, others helping run shops in Diagon Alley or Hogsmead, and even a little bakery in London. Some had even accepted jobs abroad; Charlie was working his dream job at a Dragon Sanctuary in Romania, while Ben had accepted a position at MACUSA in New York City. Every now and then, he would send her a postcard with the Empire State Building or Statue of Liberty, telling her of his time in America.

Arah sighed and clutched the picture to her chest, imagining she could feel their closeness. How she missed them all.

Another photo caught her attention in the trunk below. It was one of her and Rowan, Arah's best friend. The moving image captured a moment in time perfectly, Rowan's arm drooped loosely over her shoulder as Rowan snorted silently, wiping tears from underneath those signature glasses of hers. Arah's thumb traced over her image. It was the last photo they had taken together before Rowan had died. If she were still here, Arah had no doubt Rowan would have become the youngest professor Hogwarts had ever known... just like she had dreamed. Merlin, she missed her. Arah often pictured what life would look like if Rowan were still in it. She'd like to think they would have been flatmates, eating midnight takeout and giggling deliriously over nothing.

Arah took the two pictures and placed them on the fireplace mantel, taking a few steps back to admire her work. The colorful images seemed to cut through the drearyness of the stark empty walls. Arah smiled, pleased with herself as she refilled her tea. It was going to be a long night, unpacking the rest of these boxes. It was about time to make this place a home.

A/N: Here we gooooo! How are we feeling?!

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While you wait, feel free to check out my other one-shots in the Hogwarts Mystery Series!

I will accept any constructive feedback (please be kind)! Closet Cannons out.